


I Want to Make a Life For You (I Want to Live There Too)

by IMightwing



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, Nightwing (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Accidental Baby Acquisition, Clones, Dick and Jason as parents, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, No Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-18
Updated: 2017-11-09
Packaged: 2018-12-03 16:33:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,467
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11536128
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IMightwing/pseuds/IMightwing
Summary: Jason and Dick are kidnapped and cloned. Now all they have to do is figure out why. Oh, and raise the child who was created from their DNA.A JayDick parent fic because why not?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The rating will probably go up in the future, but for now there's nothing explicit. They just talk about the sex.
> 
> Title comes from Dead Man's Dollar by Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness. 
> 
> Shoutouts to Simply_Fabulous and samaelstoker for reading and cheerleading <3.

The thing about spending your formative years training to be a vigilante was that it gifted you with a certain set of skills. The ability to wake up quickly and assess your surroundings was one of them, and the fact that Dick Grayson was currently unable to do either of those things did not bode well. 

Dick took a deep breath and forced his training to kick in, something he hadn’t had to do in years. He kept his eyes closed, wanting to take stock of his person, before anything else. Better to let his captors, whoever they were, think he was still out. He could hear the steady sound of an I.V drip. He was strapped to a table, lying mostly upright. His lungs felt awful and he could feel pinpricks inside his left arm, so probably gassed and hooked up to an I.V. His mask was still on, so that was good. No need to fake his death and become a superspy again. Dick took another deep breath as he tried to think. What was the last thing that happened? He’d been in a warehouse fighting a guy wielding a sawn-off piece of piping as a weapon when Jason had caused a distraction and started taking on Pipe Guy himself, then Pipe Guy had gotten in a lucky hit and smashed Jason’s helmet. Shit, Jason. Where was he?

Dick’s eyes flew open and he quickly searched the room around him. To his relief, Jason was strapped to another table a few feet away, still seemingly unconscious. Dick sighed. This one was going to be an interesting one. There’d been an explosion inside the warehouse Dick was staking out and he and Jason had gone in guns-and-escrima-sticks-blazing. Only, once they’d gotten in there, it was pretty obvious they’d been set up. The last thing Dick could remember was the sickly-sweet smelling gas flooding the room, and the sickening feeling in his gut that neither he nor Jason had a rebreather on them. The thing Dick hadn’t yet figured out was why it had been a trap. What had they wanted?

At least Dick still had his gloves on. He triggered the distress signal Tim had built into the glove and tried to surreptitiously take in his surroundings. He and Jason were strapped to identical tables, both hooked up to IVs. The room smelled medicinal, like the antiseptic Alfred used to treat minor wounds. There was a bank of computers on the opposite side of the room, partially blocked by the big lab tables set up with all sorts of equipment. No door visible, so Dick was operating under the assumption that it was behind them. There was no one physically in the room with them, but Dick didn’t doubt for one second that there were cameras everywhere. He looked over at Jason, hoping he’d started to show signs of life, but no such luck. He was breathing though, so no need to go searching for a Lazarus pit just yet. Dick frowned. If Jason had been conscious, he would have yelled at Dick for making that joke, even if they both knew Jason would just have been mad he hadn’t made it first. 

With Jason still out and no backup in sight, there really wasn’t much more to do than to wait it out and see if he could figure anything else out until Bruce got there. Dick mentally ran through what he already knew about the situation, but his thoughts were interrupted as he heard the swish of a door opening behind him. Huh. Maybe the information gathering would be easier than he thought. 

“Ah, you’re awake,” a woman with grey hair pulled back in a severe bun peered at him through black-rimmed glasses. “Sorry dear, but we’re not ready for you to send that SOS to the Bat just yet.” Her tone was clipped, but almost sweet, providing a contrast which failed to deliver the comfort she probably intended it to. 

Dick grinned down at her. “Aw, no offense lady, I’m sure you make a mean chocolate chip cookie, but I’d much rather go back to the Bat than stay here attached to your table.”

The woman looked up at him as she inserted a needle into the bag of the IV. “They said you were the funny one. I see they were right.” She pushed down on the plunger and injected whatever was in the needle into the IV. “Nighty-night, Nightwing.” She winked before turning away to put the needle in the brightly-colored sharps container on the wall.

She didn’t seem the usual Gotham supervillain type, Dick mused. But wow, whatever was in the needle worked quickly, as the woman’s face grew fuzzy before going black completely.

*

“Grayson? Grayson. I order you to wake up this instant.”

“Chill, Damian. Give him time. B said he had, and I quote, ‘one hell of an anesthetic in his system.’ It’ll take some time for that to clear out.”

“Hmmph. Says you, Drake.”

“Says science, Damian.”

Dick didn’t need to open his eyes to know that Tim and Damian were arguing about him. “Science is deeply overrated,” he said, wincing at how rough his voice sounded. He cracked an eye open to see the two of them peering down at him, his crack apparently ending their argument. 

“Told you it would work,” Damian muttered.

“So, fill me in. What’d I miss?” Dick carefully situated himself so he was sitting up. Tim shot out a hand to steady him when he wobbled. “Where’s Jason? How’d we get out of there?”

“Which one you want me to start with?”

“Where’s Jason?”

“Todd is concussed, but perfectly fine.” Damian cut in, Tim looking exasperated behind him. “He was taken upstairs to his old room to rest.”

“Thanks, D.” Dick hissed in a breath as he stood up. Whatever that drug had been was powerful, not to mention the gas they’d originally been hit with. “How’d we get out of there?”

Damian was silent. 

“Oh, do I get to explain this one?” Tim asked, drily. “The two of you were in some underground bunker beneath the warehouse. Bruce and I did the usual, got ourselves in there, and got you out. Damian was on the other side of town, so he missed out on this little escapade.” Tim glanced over at Damian glowering. “As you can see, he’s fine with it.”

Dick started towards the stairs out of the cave. “You said Jason was upstairs?”

“Grayson, you need to rest,” Damian scurried after him. “Your health is important.”

“So is his, Dames.” Dick knew that Jason was probably not enjoying his trip down memory lane in the manor. While Jason and Bruce were on probably the best terms they’d been on since Jason’s return to the land of the living, there was still some tension there. But Dick knew that the manor brought up memories of a happier time that Jason preferred to keep buried.

Dick swung open the door to Jason’s room. “So what’s the verdict, doc? He gonna make it?”

“Should you be up, Dick?” Bruce turned from his seat in an armchair by the bed.

“I’m fine. Takes more than a little gas to get rid of me.” Dick waved a hand as he smiled and leaned on the wall while Tim and Damian poked their heads in the door. 

“Oh good, the gang’s all here,” Jason said from the bed. 

“Master Jason is concussed, but will make a full recovery if he takes the time needed to allow himself to recover,” Alfred said, looking sternly down at Jason. Dick tried not to smile as he saw the abashed look on Jason’s face.

“Yeah, Alf, I know.”

“Well, since you’re both here and awake, we can debrief and then you can get some rest. What happened before Tim and I came in for the extraction?” Bruce said, suddenly businesslike. Jason looked less than happy with this turn of events. 

“Not much to tell,” Dick started. “We were staking out the warehouse in relation to the new drugs that have been coming in through the harbor. There was an explosion, so we went in to check it out.”

“We were set up.” Jason said roughly. “We got in there, they knew our weaknesses, and they took us down. They knew the gas would get us. Nightwing doesn’t have a utility belt, so no fun toys. And they went straight for my helmet.”

“Then they gassed us.” Dick agreed. “I woke up at one point and triggered the distress signal, but they gave me something to knock me out again. And that’s where you come in.”

Bruce nodded, thoughtful. “We got your signal. Tim and I were closest. We found you both strapped to tables in a bunker underneath the warehouse. Any idea what they wanted with you?”

“I was out the whole time, don’t look at me.” Jason shook his head. “Ow.”

“I have no idea, just that they didn’t want me awake. They knocked me back out pretty quickly.”

Bruce nodded. “Not to needlessly alarm either of you, but it’s likely they took DNA samples. We didn’t find any other signs they had done anything. Barbara has made sure over the years that no agencies have your DNA on file, so your identities won’t be compromised. Still, we’ll keep an ear out and keep surveilling the area. I’m taking you both off patrol until Alfred clears you to go out again.” 

Jason sulked, evidently too out of it to think of a witty comeback.

“If that’s all, I believe everyone could use some rest,” Alfred began shooing everyone out of Jason’s room.

Jason threw the covers off his legs and went to stand up. “Yeah, as fun as this little team-up has been, I’m gonna head out.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Bruce asked at the same time Alfred said, “I’m not so sure that’s wise, Master Jason.”

Jason looked uncomfortable with all the apparent attention.

“It’s fine,” Dick cut in. “He can crash at my place tonight. I’ll keep an eye on him.”

Jason looked at Dick, unsure how to interpret the gesture.

“It’s not far. I’ll take you to pick up your bike in the morning.” Dick smiled.

Jason shrugged, realizing his options were Dick’s or the manor. “Fine. Got any more pain meds for the road, Alf? I’m gonna need them if Dickie’s driving.”

*

“You didn’t have to do this,” Jason said, his eyes not moving from the passing scenery.

“No. And?” Dick said, not feeling up to the fight he was sure Jason was trying to instigate. 

“So why did you?” Jason asked flatly.

“Does everything have to have an ulterior motive?” Dick sighed. “I couldn’t just invite you back to my place because I know you don’t like being in the manor and I thought you’d actually get some rest if you were in my apartment?”

Jason was silent a minute. “It isn’t a booty call?”

Dick sighed. “You have a concussion, Jason. We are not having sex.”

“Then why are you taking me back to your place?” Jason asked, slowly.

“I told you. I know the manor makes you uncomfortable, I wanted you to actually sleep tonight, and your apartment is ages away. It makes sense for you to crash at mine. That’s it.” Dick huffed, too tired for a fight.

The rest of the car ride passed in uncomfortable silence. Once they had hauled their aching bodies up to Dick’s apartment and the door was securely locked behind them, Jason headed for the couch. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Dick sighed for the umpteenth time that evening. “Jay, you don’t have to sleep on the couch.”

Jason turned back around, looking tired. “We’re not having sex.”

“You can still sleep in my bed. It’s not some sacred place you’re only allowed if we’ve slept together.” Dick walked over to where Jason was fidgeting and closed the distance that had been between them all night. He smoothed a hand through Jason’s hair and down his jaw. “You’re here because I care about you and I want to make sure you’re safe.”

Jason looked away. Dick knew it was a sign of how out of sorts he felt that he didn’t have a witty retort to Dick’s sappiness. 

“We can if you want. It’s fine.”

“Just because we’re sleeping together doesn’t mean everything has to be about that. We can exist in the same space without getting our dicks out. Jay, you don’t owe me sex for letting you stay here.”

“I don’t have,” Jason started before sighing and resting his head on Dick’s shoulder. “My head hurts.” Jason lazily looped his arms around Dick’s hips. 

Dick idly wondered just how many pain pills Jason had taken tonight. He gently guided Jason’s head back up and leaned in to press a chaste kiss to Jason’s lips. Dick knew he was playing with boundaries here. He’d just said they weren’t having sex, but Dick couldn’t help himself. 

One of the occupational hazards of vigilantism was that there were very few others who actually understood what the lifestyle was like. Trying to date someone outside of the lifestyle was messy and difficult, and trying to date another vigilante was even messier. Dick knew this thing with Jason could really only end in heartache, because of what they did and who Dick was. Casual sex was not something Dick Grayson indulged in, and yet here he was. Not that this was all that casual anymore, at least from his side.

“You know, it’s probably a good thing you said no sex tonight.” Jason mumbled against Dick’s lips. “I’ve had way too many Vicodin to fuck you. Not sure I could get it up, if we’re being honest.”

Dick chuckled softly, trying to ignore the faint heat he felt at Jason even mentioning fucking him. “It’s okay, Little Wing. Let’s get you showered, and then we can get some sleep.”

Jason grumbled as Dick steered him towards the bathroom. Dick set out a clean towel and turned to leave, but stopped when he felt a hand on his wrist. 

“You can stay,” Jason said, his eyes trained resolutely at the floor, once Dick had turned around. 

“Jay, I--”

“Not to have sex. Just to…stay. You need to shower, too.” Jason said defensively, finally looking up to meet Dick’s eyes.

“Okay. Let me grab another towel.” Dick returned to find Jason already stripped down and in the shower. Dick shucked his clothes off and slipped in with him.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey you,” Jason replied. “You come here often?” He turned around to look at Dick with unfocused eyes.

“How many Vicodin did you take, exactly?” Dick laughed and grabbed the shampoo bottle.

“I took what Alfred gave me.” Jason said, haughtily. 

“And Alfred definitely wouldn’t have given you enough to knock you out for a solid 8 hours, right?” 

Jason paused to consider the idea. “That sneaky butler.” 

Dick laughed as he began working the shampoo into Jason’s hair. 

“Dickie…” Jason started, his eyes slipping shut as Dick massaged his scalp. “Whatcha doing?”

“Taking care of you.”

“Why?”

“Because you’re concussed.”

“Guess I should get concussed more often.” Jason looked down at Dick with a sleepy smirk.

“Or you should let me take care of you, even when you aren’t high on pain pills.”

“Nah. That doesn’t sound like me. Concussed. For sure.”

Dick rolled his eyes. “Okay, Concussed Wonder. Rinse.” Jason dutifully ducked his head under the spray and rinsed the shampoo out. 

“You gonna wash my back too, Dickiebird?” Jason turned around, then looked over his shoulder and waggled his eyebrows, causing Dick to bust out laughing.

“Has that line ever actually worked for you?” He asked, reaching for the soap.

Jason pouted. Dick laughed again, fondly this time, and leaned in to kiss Jason’s shoulder. “Yes, I’m going to wash your back. Though not in the way you implied.”

“Well, where’s the fun in that?” Jason’s voice was suspiciously breathy as Dick worked the tension out of his shoulders.

“We’ll just have to wait a few days for fun, I’m afraid.” 

“That’s boring.”

“That’s being safe.”

“Yeah. Boring.”

“Are you saying that this is totally boring?” Dick asked, his hands skimming Jason’s lower back and brushing the top of his ass.

Jason shivered. “Careful, Dickie. Don’t be writing checks you can’t…something.”

“Yeah, Jay, I’m the one who needs to worry about that.” Dick laughed. “Yell at me for that when you haven’t had enough Vicodin to take out an elephant.”

“You’d know,” Jason muttered as he ducked under the spray again to wash the soap off. He watched with a sleepy grin as Dick quickly got himself clean.

Once they were both out of the shower, Dick reached up to towel off Jason’s hair, laughing when it ended up going every direction. “Shut up, some of us have curls. Least it’s not a mullet.” Jason frowned, taking the towel from Dick’s hands and tossing it in his face. 

“That was not a mullet. It-” Jason silenced him with a look.

“It was a mistake, is what it was.”

“Well just for that, maybe I won’t give you pants to sleep in.”

Jason shrugged. “Who are you really hurting there, wonder boy?”

Dick sighed. “Let me find some big enough. Don’t,” he said without looking, knowing Jason was about to make some crack about being big.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Jason said, lightly.

*

Dick had done his best to get Jason fed and into bed before he passed out from the pain meds, and from the way Jason’s head was pillowed on Dick’s chest without any complaints, they’d barely made it in time.

“Thank you,” Dick heard from the darkness.

“For what?”

“Didn’t have to…do all this.” Dick could see Jason’s hand vaguely waving in the darkness. 

“Of course I did, Jay. I care about you.”

“It’s nice.”

“What is?”

“Having someone care. ‘S good. I think I like it.” Jason was barely awake at this point, his arms wrapped loosely around Dick’s stomach.

*

The next morning, Dick woke up to an empty bed. He wished he could say that was a surprise, but it wasn’t. This was what Jason did: he got close, he got vulnerable, and he ran. It was his usual pattern. Dick sighed and went to go make a much-needed cup of coffee after the late night. When he got to the kitchen, he noticed the post-it note stuck to the coffeepot written in Jason’s loopy scrawl. 

_I’m okay. Don’t worry._

Dick looked at the note for a long moment, hoping Jason wasn’t lying, that he was actually okay. He stuck the note on the fridge before getting the coffee out of the cabinet. There was nothing he could do, at this point. He’d learned that the first time Jason had run. He’d tracked Jason to his safehouse, where they’d had a massive fight about boundaries and invasion of privacy. Seeking Jason out had only resulted in driving Jason away for a longer period of time. Dick knew now that he had to let Jason lick his wounds in private, that eventually he’d come back when he felt he’d regained enough pride.

Dick couldn’t exactly say that he blamed Jason for this behavior, but he did wish he could fix it somehow. Dick knew that it came from Jason’s past. He also knew it wasn’t an easy fix. Trauma wasn’t something you could wave a wand over and have it be okay; Dick knew that firsthand. But Dick wanted to show Jason that he could open up, he could get close, and his family would still be there. Jason couldn’t see how happy they all were to have him back in the family, working together. He didn’t see the pride in Bruce’s eyes when Jason showed up to help, or the quiet smile Alfred got when he saw them all in the cave. Jason had a place, and he was loved.

The only trick now was convincing Jason of that, Dick mused, sipping his coffee. And unfortunately, he had no ideas on that front.

*

It had been almost a month since the last time Dick had seen Jason. Unfortunately, in that month, Freeze had broken out of Arkham for Nora, Harley had broken into Arkham for Poison Ivy, Wally had decided on and been talked out of challenging Michael Phelps to an eating contest, and they still hadn’t figured out why Dick and Jason had been kidnapped in the first place. So all in all, Dick hadn’t exactly had time to worry about Jason’s lack of communication. He’d been so busy he’d barely had time to do basic human things like doing laundry and finding food. 

And so it was currently 3:30 in the afternoon on a Tuesday, and Dick Grayson had ordered a pizza. Because he was an adult. And that was a perfectly valid way of feeding himself, Alfred. He had the T.V. tuned to some random reality show and was perfectly content to be sitting on his couch, doing absolutely nothing for the time being. 

The doorbell ringing pulled Dick out of his stupor. He headed to the door, grabbing his wallet on the way. He opened the door with a smile, ready to greet the kind soul who had brought him his pizza, only for that smile to fade when he saw there was no one there. A soft coo from below made him look down.

Bright blue eyes looked up at him from underneath a shock of black hair. A gurgle escaped a tiny mouth. 

“You are not a pizza,” Dick said to the baby on his doorstep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment/kudos if you enjoyed. Find me on tumblr at [graysonning](http://graysonning.tumblr.com).


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At long last. I promise the next update won't take me 4 months. 
> 
> Thanks to Volavi for beta-ing, and the discord lovelies for cheerleading!

All in all, showing up to Wayne Manor with a baby in tow had gone about as well as Dick had expected. Which, to be fair, Dick hadn’t really expected it to go well. Bruce had tried to hide his shock with glaring, Tim had jumped into action mode, and Damian was sulking in a chair by the computers. Alfred had simply taken a set of car keys and made a comment about babies having rather different needs than adults.

The baby in question was currently sitting in the carrier on one of the exam tables looking up at Tim with big, blue eyes. Dick was sitting cross-legged on the table next to the carrier. When Bruce and Tim had taken blood to run tests, the baby had begun to cry. Dick had crawled up on the table to hold the baby still and try to provide some comfort and just never left. 

“Why is the first assumption that I’m an irresponsible sexual deviant?” Dick asked as Tim was cleaning up. “Don’t answer that.” The ultimate irony of the situation, that Dick definitely wasn’t about to share with the group, was that the person he’d been sleeping with most recently wasn’t exactly equipped for pregnancy. “We don’t even know it’s my kid!” Dick argued, knowing in his gut he was wrong. He knew. He’d known the moment he’d opened the door. Not that it mattered to him, at this point. His kid or not, he was invested in this kid’s future. Funny how finding a baby on your doorstep made you feel responsible for its life.

“Dick. It looks just like you,” Tim said. 

Dick sighed. “She. She looks just like me. Probably shouldn’t keep calling her it.”

Bruce came striding back to the exam table tucked away from the computer bank. He was dressed nicely, in normal clothes with no batsuit in sight. And yet, even without the Kevlar, he still commanded attention. “Judging by her size and weight, she’s approximately 6 months old. Tim, will you make sure the genetics test is running as planned?” 

Tim nodded and slipped away to the computers. Dick saw him say a few words to Damian, who ignored him.

The baby looked up at Bruce, when suddenly her tiny face screwed up and she started crying. 

“Aw, B, you scared her.” Dick quickly undid the straps of the carrier and pulled the baby into his lap. “Hey, baby, it’s okay. Bruce isn’t scary, I promise. He’s not coming at you with a needle this time.” He made soothing noises and rubbed her back, but nothing seemed to calm her down.

“If I may.” Alfred suddenly appeared at Dick’s elbow. “It’s very likely that the little one requires a diaper change.”

“Oh,” Dick said. Of course. Yikes, he was so out of his element here. “Right, um…”

Alfred smiled slightly. “If you wish, I can take care of it, Master Dick.”

“Do you mind? Just this once? And then the next time to show me how?” Dick figured he probably looked as lost as he felt.

“Of course.” Alfred smiled as he took the baby into his arms. “There now, no need to fret. Hush, dear.” He took her over to another part of the cave.

Dick rested his head in his hands and let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. He looked up when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“You know you aren’t going to have to do this alone,” Bruce said, looking down at Dick.

“I know. I just…I have no idea what I’m doing. Or where she even came from.” He straightened up and looked Bruce in the eye. “She’s not here because of some mistake. I haven’t done anything like you’re thinking.”

“If you say you haven’t, then you haven’t,” Bruce said simply. “I’m running the genetics test in hopes that it will shed some light as to where she did come from.”

“Any ideas?” Dick asked.

“Theories,” Bruce said. “The test results will hopefully confirm or deny a few things.”

Dick looked over at the sound of the baby laughing as Alfred changed her. He felt Bruce’s eyes on him and glanced up at him. “What?”

“Nothing,” Bruce smiled. “You’re going to make this work, Dick. You love her already.”

“It’s not exactly convenient timing, but yeah. I do.”

“Take it from me, fatherhood is not convenient.”

“Oh god, fatherhood.” Dick wanted to hide his head in his hands again.

“Like I said, you’re not alone. We’re here to help you in any way you need it.”

The baby was babbling in Alfred’s arms as he carried her back over to Dick.

“There we go, good girl. No need to fuss, now is there?” Alfred smiled as she smacked her chubby hand against his arm. 

“Thanks, Alf. I mean it, show me what to do next time. I want to do this right.” Dick settled the baby on his lap and smoothed a hand over her hair where it had stuck up. She looked up at Bruce again, and this time, let out a happy giggle. 

The sound of a motorbike made them all turn. Jason pulled into the cave, slowly coming to a stop. He slung a long leg over the bike and shook his messy hair free from the confines of his helmet. 

“Got your call, Timbo. What’s going on?” Jason called out as he tossed the helmet onto the bike. He stopped short as he saw the scene of Dick holding a baby.

“Well shit, Dickie.” Jason let out a low whistle. “Who’d you get pregnant?”

“Jay, it’s not like that,” Dick said. “Yeah, she’s my kid, that’s pretty obvious, but we have no idea how she got here.”

Jason laughed harshly. “Come on, B. Didn’t you ever give Dickiebird the talk? I certainly remember you giving it to me. That was an experience.”

Dick quickly realized why Jason was suddenly on the defensive. Jason thought Dick had slept with someone else. More to the point, a girl. And judging from the limited evidence, Dick could hardly blame him for making that assumption.

The baby turned out to be the one to break the tension. She reached out her short little arms towards Jason and laughed. 

“I think she likes you, Jay.” Dick smiled at him. 

Jason snorted. “Shows she has some sense, at least.” He rubbed a hand through his messy curls as he walked closer. “Can I hold her?”

“Of course you can, Little Wing.” Dick smiled as he approached and carefully handed the little girl over.

“Hey, beautiful,” Jason cooed. “Your dad’s an idiot, best to learn that now.” The baby giggled and grabbed at Jason’s nose. “See Dickie? She agrees.” He looked innocently back at Dick.

They were interrupted by the computers beeping. Tim studied the monitor intently for a moment before turning back to face the group.

“Um, as it turns out,” Tim said carefully. “The person Dick got pregnant…is you, Jay.”

Jason blinked slowly once, twice. “I’m sorry, say that again?”

“I’m serious. Well, not pregnant obviously, but the baby is a perfect genetic mix between you and Dick.” 

The stunned silence was broken only by the gurgles of the baby.

“If I may interject,” Alfred said, “what is the likelihood of this being related to the warehouse incident a month ago?”

“High,” Bruce said, walking quickly to look at the screen over Tim’s shoulder. He began typing, clearly making connections the rest of them were trying to catch up to.

“I’m getting in touch with Clark,” Bruce said. “He can talk to Luthor, see if he’s been involved with any side projects recently.”

“I’ll call Kon, ask if he’s heard anything, either.” Tim slipped away, pulling his phone out as he went. 

Jason was standing still, a rock breaking the current of the river of motion around them, looking down at the small girl in his arms. “Jay?” Dick asked softly, coming to stand behind him.

“I don’t – I--” Jason seemed at a loss for words. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “She’s so tiny.”

“I know,” Dick murmured, as their daughter grabbed his index finger.

“She’s ours?” Jason asked, looking at Dick for the first time.

“I guess she is.” 

*

More investigation was done with few results, late into the evening, until everyone started suiting up for patrol. Damian still hadn’t said anything to Dick, but Dick knew that wasn’t going to be solved tonight. Damian needed time to process everything that had gone on, and only after he’d done that could Dick talk to him. Jason and Damian were more alike in that regard than either of them would probably ever be willing to admit. 

“Dick,” Bruce said as Dick was reaching for the Nightwing suit. “Take the night off. You’ve had a long day.” He clapped a hand on Dick’s shoulder. 

Jason had taken the baby upstairs a couple hours ago when she had fallen asleep cuddled in his arms. He hadn’t come back down. Dick hoped he was somewhere still in the manor and that he hadn’t run again. Dick checked his normal room first, only to find it dark and empty. He continued down the hall to Jason’s old room, hoping to find the two of them in there.

He opened the door to see the baby sprawled on the bed fast asleep, Jason lying on his side protectively around her. His head was propped up in his hand, while his other hand was curled protectively over her stomach.

“Hey,” Dick said softly, closing the door behind him. 

“Hi.” Jason gave him a sad smile.

“You’re still here.” Dick moved to sit on the bed on the other side of the baby. “I was worried you’d left.”

Jason shook his head. “Couldn’t leave the baby alone.”

“I didn’t expect to find you in here,” Dick said, smoothing a hand through the baby’s fine curls. “You hate this room.”

“Yeah, well, she’s not sleeping in the Batcave.” Jason’s hand practically covered the baby’s stomach where it was gently resting. “She deserves a real bed.”

“I agree,” Dick said softly. “A real bed. A real childhood.”

Jason snorted. “No vigilantism until she’s 16.”

Dick smiled. “What about dating?”

“Oh, she’s not doing that until she’s 30. She’s going to be beautiful, obviously. Already got your eyes. We’re gonna have to work hard to keep those potential dates away.”

“Oh, my god,” Dick laughed. “You are not doing the stereotypical dad cleaning his guns when the daughter’s date arrives thing. I’m not allowing that one.”

Jason laughed, then his smile slowly fell. “So what, now all of a sudden we’re parents? Just like that?”

“Guess so. Not really how I thought it would happen, but here we are.”

Jason bristled. “I know I’m no one’s first choice to raise a kid with, Dickie.”

“Jay, that’s not what I meant.”

The baby stretched and her breath started getting shaky. She’d done this earlier, right before she’d started crying. Dick went to comfort her, but Jason was already doing it.

“Shh, you’re okay. You’re just fine, babygirl. Nothing’s gonna hurt you.” Jason rubbed the baby’s stomach gently and leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead. She yawned, stretched again, and quieted. “There you go. Go back to sleep.”

Dick’s chest felt tight as he looked at Jason and the baby. Their baby. Their daughter. He meant what he’d said before; he hadn’t expected it to happen this way. To be honest, kids were one of those things Dick always figured he’d get around to someday, but wasn’t actively in pursuit of. The bachelor vigilante life didn’t exactly lend itself to fatherhood very easily. Which was something they’d both have to figure out. 

Dick swung his legs up on the bed so that he was mirroring Jason on the other side of the baby. “Jaybird, you’re a natural. Pretty sure having you around will make fatherhood easy.” He rested his hand on top of Jason’s.

Jason snorted. “I doubt that very much.”

Dick felt his stomach clench. Surely Jason wasn’t planning on leaving? “Doubt that you’re a natural?” He said instead of acknowledging the other option. “All evidence to the contrary, Jay. You totally are.”

Jason was looking down at the baby like he couldn’t believe she was real. “She’s so beautiful. And so tiny.” He was cut off by a yawn.

“You should get some rest.” Dick also probably should sleep, considering how he’d been running himself ragged recently, but he didn’t think he could at the moment.

Apparently Jason felt the same way, judging by the way he was shaking his head. “No, I want to stay up. You should sleep, though.”

Dick smiled. “I don’t want to sleep either. I’m worried if I close my eyes too long, she’ll disappear as quickly as she came.”

“It’s been an interesting day, for sure.”

“What, you didn’t wake up this morning assuming you’d go to bed a father?”

“It’s not where I envisioned my day going, no.” Jason was frowning. Dick knew they were going to have to have a talk, and soon, about what exactly the future would hold, but for now, he was content to just lie on the bed, both holding their little girl and ignoring the fact that everything would have to change.

*

The baby was crying. Dick rolled over to look at the clock on the bedside table. 7 A.M. Everyone had probably only been in from the night for a few hours at most. Less, if something big had ended up going down.

He was not awake. But this was his life now, he supposed. Jason had fallen asleep just after midnight, still cradling the baby, and Dick knew he hadn’t been awake much later. He’d heard Jason get up at one point to change the baby, but hadn’t done much more than register the fact that there was movement in the room before falling back asleep.

Dick shook his head in an attempt to clear the sleepiness. He yawned as he carefully snuggled the crying baby into his arms. “Hey, sugarpie, it’s okay. You’re probably hungry, right?”

“Dick?” Jason sounded even more tired than Dick felt. 

“It’s okay, Jaybird. Go back to sleep.”

“And leave you to deal with her alone? I don’t think so.” Jason yawned as he stood up and stretched. “Did you check her diaper?”

Oh. “No, I didn’t.” Dick checked the diaper like Alfred had showed him yesterday. “She needs it changed.”

“You do that. I’ll go fix her bottle. Meet you in the kitchen?” Jason looked back as he opened the door. His curly hair was adorably rumpled and his eyes were still heavy with sleep.

“Yeah. I’ll be down in a few.” Dick grabbed the diaper stuff and set the baby on the bed. He didn’t know why everyone thought this was so bad. This diaper thing was a piece of cake. Figuring out where all the snaps on her tiny little outfit, on the other hand. Dick was pretty sure her romper was more complicated than any superhero suit he’d ever worn.

Dick followed the smell of coffee down into the kitchen. Jason already looked more awake. Dick knew Jason would chug his first cup of coffee every time, then actually enjoy the second. Dick also knew that he shouldn’t find the sight of Jason testing the bottle’s temperature on the inside of his wrist attractive, but there you go. Dick blamed it on the lack of sleep.

“Hey,” Dick said, eloquently.

“Hey,” Jason replied, just as eloquently. “I made you coffee. I know you’ll be useless until you’ve had it, so you drink and I’ll feed her.” 

Dick carefully handed the baby over before making a beeline for the cup of coffee Jason had fixed for him. Well, it was the Nightwing mug sitting on the counter so Dick assumed it was his. He took a sip and hummed in appreciation. Jason knew exactly how he liked his coffee and it was one of the best things in the morning. Dick looked over to watch Jason feeding the baby. He wasn’t sure where Jason had picked up his skills with children, but Dick was thankful he had them. At least one of them needed to know what they were doing. 

Later that morning, Dick left Jason and the baby playing in the living room and went off to find Damian. He was hoping he’d had the time to process what he needed, or this conversation wouldn’t be a productive one. Dick gently knocked on the door to Damian’s room, hoping he’d be receptive to talking. 

“You may enter,” he heard from within the room. He opened the door to see Damian sitting on the bed with his sketchpad. 

“Hey, Dames. What’s up?” Dick asked, going to lean against one of the bed posts. 

“Nothing, merely sketching the idiotic look on Todd’s face when Drake told him you had gotten him pregnant,” Damian said, not looking up. 

“Look, Damian,” Dick sat on the edge of the bed, making sure to keep his distance and give Damian his space. “I know the past day has been kind of overwhelming, but nothing is going to change. You’re still my brother. You’re still my Robin.”

Damian finally looked up from his sketchpad. “And you think playing house with Todd won’t take up your time?”

Dick sighed. “Okay, some things have obviously changed. But I want to be there for you, Damian. I love you. That hasn’t changed at all. I’m not going to abandon you. But you are going to have to work with me a bit, okay?”

Damian looked at him for a long moment before giving him a slight nod. 

Dick grinned. “Do you want to come play with her?”

Damian looked uncomfortable. “I am unsure of how to play with an infant.”

Dick hated himself for not realizing that. Of course Damian hadn’t had much experience with children. He doubted the League saw much use for letting their heir play with other children. “Well,” Dick said, trying to keep his voice light. “She’s pretty young, she’ll be entertained pretty much no matter what you do. Jason is down there with her, you should join them.”

“I will consider it,” Damian said, not looking any more comfortable. He went back to his drawing. 

“Okay. I’ll talk to you later.” Dick left, knowing even getting Damian to open up a bit had been a big step. He walked back down to the living room, only to find Jason and Bruce sitting on opposite sides of the room glaring at each other, while the baby gurgled on Jason’s lap. 

Dick sighed again. “What did I miss?”

“Bruce wants to keep her here. Under observation,” Jason sneered.

“I heard back from Clark. He talked to Luthor, neither of them have any idea what could be going on here. I suggested we keep her here for a few more days, just to keep an eye on her,” Bruce said calmly, probably trying to avoid a fight.

“I appreciate that, B. Thank you. But I think Jason and I need to take her home. My apartment isn’t far. And there’s multiple ways we can get in touch if we need you.”

Bruce looked at them both. Dick knew it was Bruce’s processing look, the one he used when he was trying to make a decision. Finally, he nodded. “Alright. But you will call me if you need me. Even if you don’t need me, call me.” He dug for his wallet and pulled a matte black card out of one of the slots before handing it to Dick. “Take that. I know your apartment isn’t baby ready. Not to mention she’ll need clothes and a place to sleep.”

Dick took the card, reluctantly. He didn’t want to need Bruce’s help with this, but he also knew baby stuff was expensive and neither he nor Jason was exactly rolling in steady income. “Thank you, Bruce. This means a lot.” He looked over to where Jason was sitting with the baby. He looked like he was biting back words, but didn’t say anything. 

Apparently Dick was just destined to be around people feeling uncomfortable today. 

They got the baby bundled back into her carrier and in Dick’s car, after multiple suggestions from Alfred about things she would need, and multiple reminders from Bruce to call him with any problems that might arise. Finally, they were pulling away from the manor. 

“You okay, Jason?” Dick asked, noticing the way Jason had leaned his head against the window.

“Peachy,” Jason replied, sitting up straight. “So, where to first with Daddy’s fancy card?”

“I don’t like the thought of Bruce paying for her things any more than you do, Jay. But unless you’ve got a spare few thousand dollars lying around, we don’t really have much of a choice.”

Jason crossed his arms. “Sadly, no.” He turned to look at Dick. “A few thousand dollars. Holy shit.”

“Baby stuff is expensive. But a few grand is hardly anything to Bruce. And it makes him feel like he helped. Which he did.” Dick stopped at a red light and turned to look at Jason. “I want the best for her. I know you do, too. If that means accepting Bruce’s money, then that’s what we do.”

“Well, when you put it that way,” Jason grumbled, glancing back to where the baby was happily chewing on the stuffed bear Alfred had given her earlier. “I don’t like it, you’re right. But she deserves the best. So we get her the best.”

Dick smiled. “Just think of all the cute outfits we can buy her with that card.”

“I have seen your old costumes. I am not letting you dress our daughter, Dick.” Jason sounded annoyed, but when Dick glanced over at him, he was grinning.

*

By the time they made it back to Dick’s apartment, his tiny car was full of everything they could think of that the baby might need. Between a crib, a stroller, a changing table, and a play pen, they’d already racked up a hefty sum on Bruce’s card. Jason had tried to stop Dick from buying a Batman onesie for the baby, but had caved in when Dick said Jason could buy the set of classic rock onesies as a compromise. 

“That’s the last of it,” Dick groaned, setting down the final box from the back of his car. “Now we just have to put it all together.”

Jason shook his head. “Dinner first,” he said from his spot on the couch and set the bottle on the endtable. “She just finished eating. We need to, as well.”

“What do you want?” Dick grabbed the stack of takeout menus from the kitchen counter. “I do not have the energy to cook right now.”

“So what’s your excuse the rest of the time?” Jason teased. “Just order a pizza or something, that’s fine.”

“You still like veggie pizza with added bacon?” Dick asked, digging his phone out of his pocket. 

Jason nodded, digging in one of the bags for one of the burp cloths they’d bought.

Dick idly wondered where his pizza from yesterday had ended up, so he called a different pizza place so the first one wouldn’t think he was a total spaz. Once the pizza was ordered, he walked back into the living room to find Jason fastening the baby back into her carrier, carrying on a conversation with the baby’s babbles. 

“She’s falling asleep, I figured that was a good place for her until we built the crib. That should be our first project after we eat.” Jason let the baby grab onto his finger and suck on it.

“I’m going to start some laundry while we wait for the pizza.” Dick started ripping the tags off the new things they’d bought for the baby. Occasionally he would glance over at Jason, gently rocking the baby in her carrier, a soft smile on his face. Jason looked younger when he was watching the baby. The angry set of his face faded away, almost as if he was too distracted to put his mask on. 

Dick thought it was one of the most beautiful things he’d ever seen. 

Once they’d both eaten dinner and the baby had drifted off to sleep, they started building the stack of furniture they’d bought. After the crib and changing table had been built (and tested for stability and safety by Jason crawling on top of them and deciding that if they held him, they would hold the baby), the baby had been woken up crying from the noise and had to be soothed back to sleep, the laundry had been finished, folded, and put away into the dresser (that had also needed to be built), and everything had been quietly moved into Dick’s spare bedroom, and the baby moved from the carrier to the crib, they had both collapsed on the couch with two cans of beer Dick had unearthed from the back of his fridge. 

Jason finished his beer with a long swallow and leaned forward to set the can on the coffee table. “I should get going.”

“What?” Dick’s brain wasn’t functioning, but he couldn’t imagine why on earth Jason was trying to leave. 

“Come on, Dick. We both know you’ll do better with her if I’m not around. Did you really expect we would, what? Settle down and play house?” He rested his elbows on his knees. 

That was exactly what Dick had expected, but apparently Jason hadn’t felt the same way. “Would that really be so bad?”

“It’s not about it being a bad thing. It’s about who you are. And who I am. Eventually you’re going to find some beautiful girl who finds your single father-ness too adorable to handle and marries you. She’ll grow up with two parents.” 

Dick wrapped his hand around Jason’s bicep. “Jason. She already has two parents. You and me. She is as much yours as she is mine. That means we’re both going to be involved in raising her. I thought it’d be easier if we just all lived here, but if it makes you more comfortable, we can do some sort of joint custody thing. The most important thing is that we find an arrangement we’re all happy with.”

Jason stared at him. “You really did picture us being a happy little family.”

“Is that a bad thing?” Maybe it hadn’t been realistic for Dick to imagine the three of them settling down, but he didn’t see why they couldn’t make it work. 

“You and I aren’t exactly the type to get a white picket fence and a dog,” Jason said, his voice hollow. 

“You’re right, we aren’t.” Dick felt Jason’s arm tense. “But that doesn’t mean we have to be that kind of family. We can find something that works for us. And for her.”

“She really needs a name.” Jason said softly, looking at his hands. 

“She does,” Dick agreed. “But that’s something we can figure out tomorrow. We’re both too tired for that tonight.”

They sat in silence a few long moments, before Jason finally broke it. “I’ll stay.” He straightened up and looked at Dick. “But whatever we were doing before, it’s done. If I stay, we aren’t having sex and playing at being a couple. We’re just living under the same roof to raise her.”

“Will that arrangement make you happy?” Dick knew what Jason was doing. He was pushing Dick away out of fear. But maybe he had a point. Adding a baby to the mix changed everything. Maybe it was best they take some time to reassess where they stood.

“It will.” Jason sounded sure. 

“Then that’s what we’ll do.” Dick meant it; respecting Jason’s wishes was important to him. 

“I’ll just sleep here tonight.” Jason clasped his hands above his head and stretched, clearly ending the conversation.

“On the couch?”

“Dick, you have a ridiculously comfortable couch.”

“Yes, I know. That’s why I bought it. Doesn’t change the fact that you’re over six feet tall.”

“Then I’ll take the bed in the spare room.”

“You’re willingly sharing your room with a crying baby who will no doubt wake up at all hours of the night?”

Jason shrugged. “I’ve had worse roommates. It’s fine Dick, I promise. I feel better sleeping close to her, anyway.”

Dick knew he wasn’t going to win the battle. “Alright. The sheets are clean, and there’s extra blankets in the hall closet if you need them.”

Jason nodded, before standing up and heading for the spare room. “Night, Dickiebird,” he said softly before shutting the bedroom door. 

“Good night, Jay,” Dick replied, before heading to his own bedroom. If this was what it took to keep Jason around, then so be it. He hoped they’d all made the right decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment/kudos if you enjoyed. 
> 
> I promise she will actually get a name in the next chapter. Come scream at me on tumblr about this fic at [graysonning](http://graysonning.tumblr.com).


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